This is the 10% happier podcast.

Dan Harris.

Hey gang, I've been thinking a lot about individualism lately and how deeply ingrained for me at least,

the notion is there's so much emphasis in our culture on individual achievement, winning,

acquiring, getting known, et cetera, et cetera.

We can even extend in a warped way to meditation, which personally I have often subtly misconstrued

as some kind of solo athletic endeavor.

I'm definitely not saying that all individualism is bad.

For sure, I am not going to give up trying to publish successful books, grow this podcast

in our app, blah, blah, blah.

But all the data show very clearly that this is not a winning strategy for deep and abiding

happiness.

Today we're going to talk about a towering figure who offered what my guests will call

medicine for individualism.

This person who we are going to be discussing was a proponent of a concept called interbeing,

which I can only fleetingly understand on a molecular level.

I suspect many of you may have heard about the death in January of Ticknot Han, the Vietnamese,

Zen Master, peace activist, poet, and author.

He was the founder of the International Plum Village Community of Engaged Buddhism, Dr.

Martin Luther King Jr. called him an apostle of peace and nonviolence when nominating him

for the Nobel Peace Prize back in the 60s.

Thousands of people came out recently for his funeral.

...